But hey, we were on rain bikes with disc brakes, we were dressed for whatever might come our way (almost; I should have been wearing booties, not just toe covers), and it was about time we have a ride we didn’t cut short because we were feeling bad. We certainly had a reason to assume we were feeling bad; first time over 30 minutes up Old LaHonda that didn’t involve a mechanical issue. But we kept going; no way was I going to do another “ugly” ride like last weekend, heading north on Skyline.
The rain was on & off, more nuisance than anything. Wind wasn’t too bad, but of course it was a headwind going out to the coast. I was looking forward to coffee in San Gregorio but Kevin informed me that he’s serious about trying to cut back, hoping it might reduce the number and severity of seizures he’s been having lately. Before getting too amazed at Kevin being able to stick to that, he did buy a Coke, so he still did get some caffeine, just not as much.
Thankfully it was pretty nice while we were in San Gregorio, maybe mid-50s, so we had an enjoyable stop for drinks and turkey & jack sandwiches. Fuel for the ride back over the hill. Stage Road felt about as bad as Old LaHonda, and Tunitas… well yeah, it was a slug fest (Kevin counted 20 slugs I think?) but at least it’s long and steep enough to have an excuse for not being easy.
Heavy rain waited until the exact moment we hit the stop of Tunitas, just in time for descending Kings. It still amazes me how much traction we have on 28c tires at 90psi; we’re able to descend at a pretty decent speed without feeling dangerous. So why are so many road bikes coming with 32c tires these days? Probably because most people are reasonable and willing to sacrifice a bit of speed for a smoother ride.